A3O-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 22, 1987
Talk about cold areas in Pen
nsylvania with short growing sea
sons and Susquehanna County will
be one area mentioned.
Putting a cover crop on the soil
after silage corn has been a prob
lem. Regular rye doesn’t have time
to establish growth before the
winter storms. As a result, soil
erodes at high rates because of the
lack of cover.
However, now there is a new
cover crop variety available
Aroostook rye. Aroostook rye was
originally developed for cover fol
lowing potatoes in Maine.
After hearing reports of its suc
cess in the cold climate of Maine,
personnel of the US DA Soil Con
servation Service (SCS) and the
Susquehanna County Corfserva
lion District decided it was worth a
try.
Test seedings were set up on six
farms in 1985-86. The results were
so impressive that seeding trials
were established on 24 farms this
past Fall. SCS conservation tech
nician Bob Wagner, carefully
measured growth on all plots in
mid November and again in April.
Aroostook rye had up to twice
the growth of regular rye. Bob also
found that Aroostook survived the
winters better and by mid April
was several inches taller. Bill bee
man, a Brooklyn Township far
mer, reported that his Aroostook
was twice as high as the regular
rye. Bowen Jayne of the same
township staled that his Aroostook
was twice as thick and on April
14th the Aroostook was five inches
high as compared to two inches for
regular rye.
John Oyler, SCS Plant Materials
Ice Cream Super
Scooper Benefit
The Cumberland County Far
mer’s Association will hold an ice
cream scooper bowl from noon to
9 p.m. today at the Carlisle Plaza
Mall, K-Mart entrance.
Ice cream will be sold for 50
cents a scoop. An ice cream-eating
contest, prepared by Schwan’s of
Chambersburg, will be featured at
Lebanon Area
Fairgrounds
presents it’s
Labor Day Weekend
DEMOLITION
DERBY
Saturday Evening,
September 5, 1987
To be held at the Lebanon Area Fairgrounds,
corner of Rocherty & Cornwall Rds., off Rt.
72 South of Lebanon.
* Entries Still Being Accepted *
Call 717-867-1809 For More Details
Free Parking Good Food Available
Admission 12 & Over $5.00
New Cover Crop For
Specialist, adds that Aroostook
Rye can grow six inches or more in
one week in April. Lenox Town
ship farmer, Jim Zick’s rye was six
inches high on April 15 and 14
inches on the 30th of April. At the
same time, regular rye was five
inches and nine inches.
Ron Kays, New Milford Town
ship, had a growth of 13 inches on
his Aroostook Rye on May 1.
Twenty-eight days later it was 54
inches. His regular rye was seven
and 44 inches on the same dates.
Wagner reports that the seeding
trials were set up so that Aroostook
and regular rye were both planted
in the same field on the same soils.
Part of the Aroostook rye seed was
provided by the Soil Conservation
Service plant materials center at
Big Hats, New York. The largest
portion was purchased by the
county conservation district from
their non-till planter fund. The
conservation district rents no-lill
seeders to farmers.
Each farmer was given eight
bushel of Aroostook Rye seed. The
farmer had to provide an equal
amount of regular rye.
Method of seeding was up to the
farmer. Several methods were
used including no-till, broadcast,
disking and spreading with
manure.
Use of the rye was up to the far
mers. Fifteen plowed the rye down
for organic mailer. Four chopped
the rye for silage with one stating
that he got one-third more from the
Aroostook and two harvested the
rye for grain.
SCS District Conservationist,
Wayne Ray noted that actual cost
to the farmer was low. It cost
7:30 p.m,
On hand for this affair will be
Patty Dunkleberger, Cumberland
County Dairy Princess, Michelle
Davidson, alternate and the Coun
ty’s Junior Representatives. Come
out and give them your support.
Proceeds will benefit the
Advanced Life Support System of
Carlisle.
7:30 P.M
$15.00 per acre to rent the conser
vation district’s no-till planter and
the cost share through the Agricul
tural Conservation Program was
$12.00 per acre.
Wagner sees several advantages
to the Aroostook Rye over regular
rye. Faster growth, more winter
hardy, and more organic matter to
plow down. Oyler adds that Aroos
took rye exhibit siginficantly bet
ter fall establishment and more
horizontal growth for better
ground cover. “It improves soil
tilth and holds residual fertilizers
near the surface for future crops,”
commented Oyler. “It offers a lot
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Cold Soils
of potential for potato growers and
other vegetable crops as well as sil
age com and it does protect the
land against erosion.”
Sid and Jim Marcy, Lenox
Township, can not put manure on
some corn fields because they are
100 distant from the barn. They feel
that these fields arc low in organic
matter. The Marcys say that the
Aroostook rye should provide
twice organic matter of regular rye
when chiseled into the soil.
There is one disadvantage to
Aroostook. Wagner says that from
his observauons, it docs not stand
very wet conditions as well as reg-
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ular rye. Wagner adds that he feels
that Aroostook rye should not be
planted in fields that arc very wet.
‘ ‘From my observation, it does not
germinate and grow as well in wet
soils”.
The seeding trials arc not going
unnoticed in Susquehanna County.
For the first time ever, a seed deal
er in the county was Unable to meet
the demand for Aroostook rye seed
as other farmers arc adopting the
practice. Perhaps it contributed to
an item in a large Pennsylvania
seed company’s newsletter that
reported the best year ever for sale
of cover crop seed.
UNION MILL
Box 40 F R.D. 1
Belleville, PA
(717) 935-2185